Savia Viegas, the author of two previous novels Tales from the Attic (2007, Saxtti) and Let Me Tell You about Quinta (2011, Penguin) has recently self published two graphic novels, Eddi & Diddi and Abha Nama.
Today India is home to about 1,500 tigers. A century ago, sportsmen killed that many every year. One Rajput, Fateh Singh, bagged 375 himself, not to mention 991 leopards, over his hunting career. The populations, conditions, and cultural meanings of wildlife in India have changed fundamentally since the heyday of the Raj.
Of Birds and Birdsong serves the purpose of a reference book, text book and field guide without being one. It is lay person-friendly. And it is useful for the nature specialist.
Navina Jafa wears many hats. Classical dancer, academician, ‘heritage consultant’, are terms associated with her many roles, but perhaps she is best known for ‘Jafa Heritage Walks’, an exercise in what she describes as ‘academic cultural tourism’.
I always have two open books on the round antique table in my hallway, chosen for their illustrations and subjects.
There has been a raging debate on the nature and scope of doing anthropology in contemporary times. The debate is more precisely about the politics and poetics inherent in the practice of ethnography contributed by the likes of Clifford Geertz, James Clifford, George Marcus among others. It has posed an imperative for anthropologists in the contemporary world to explore new methods and new sights with a fair sensibility toward the politics of writing culture.